Solder preform carrier and use

ABSTRACT

Clear thermoplastic is vacuum molded to produce rectangular, frustro-pyramidal shaped cavities in a horizontal matrix for holding rectangular solder preforms. No-clean flux liquid is dispensed onto a preform placed in each cavity, then another holder is placed upside-down on the first holder, the holders are flipped and then no-clean flux liquid is dispensed on the dry side of the preform. Holes in the cavity bottoms drain and circulate drying air to the preform bottoms. A hole in one corner and a different width slot in an opposite corner of each holder, allow multiple holders to be stacked on a bottom frame with different sized threaded posts. An empty holder and then a dust cover are stacked on the posts to hold and protect the preforms. A top frame is stacked on the posts and nuts are screwed onto the posts to form a carrier. The cavities are sized relative to the preforms to hold the preforms in position during carrier transport. The holders are unstacked and each positioned at a station with different sized posts on a rotating table of a pick-and-place machine. A robot arm with rubber tipped vacuum probe picks up the preforms and places them on a circuit board. Grippers on the arm are used to move a heated component on top of the preform for reflow soldering. The circuit board can be used without cleaning with solvents or CFC&#39;s.

AREA OF ART

This invention relates to solder-preform production, preformtransportation, and circuit board production.

BACKGROUND

In the production of circuit boards, connection of some componentsrequire relatively large areas of accurately measured volumes of solder.Commonly used mass-soldering application processes such as wavesoldering are unable to provide the required solder volumes. Therefore,when large volumes are required to connect a component, flat preformedshapes of solder are positioned between the component and the circuitboard, then the board, solder-preform and component are heated usuallyin an oven for reflow soldering the component to the board.

Individual solder-preforms are transported in bulk containers whetherthey are prefluxed or unfluxed, then they are removed from the bulkcontainers and positioned on a circuit board by hand or positioned infixed trays for automatic application to the circuit board using apick-and-place machine. Utilizing tubes and boxed for bulk distributionand dispensation are well-known. Robust flux coatings are available forthe preforms which will not be damaged during bulk transportation.Alternatively, flux pastes and powders are available which can beapplied to the preform or to the component and circuit board duringpreform application or soldering. These fluxes are highly active so thatcontamination is not a problem. After reflow, the flux is cleaned fromthe solder joint using solvents sufficiently mild to prevent damage tothe circuit board.

Recently no-clean fluxes have become available which eliminate the needto clean the circuit board with solvent after reflow soldering. Theno-clean fluxes consist of a adipic acid or citric acid in a mildsolvent such as water or an alcohol. The solution is applied to thecomponents or to a solder preform and dried before soldering.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,351,192 to La Plate discloses a "package for cementedcarbide inserts." U.S. Pat. No. 3,396 discloses an "applicator forsimultaneously applying a plurality of bodies of solder . . . When sheet10 is transparent, the end of the heating cycle is easily observed."U.S. Pat. No. 4,209,893 to Dyce et al. discloses "A solder pack consistsof a thin heat resistant carrier board having spaced holes therethroughin which are held solder rings." U.S. Pat. No. 4,354,629 discloses"solder material disposed between two polymeric layers, one of which isprovided with window means to control the flow of solder."

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the invention is to conveniently apply a no-clean fluxliquid to solder-preforms and subsequently to dry the preforms.

Another object is to protect the solder-preforms in order to preventdamage or contamination to the no-clean flux coatings during transport.

Another object is to provide the preforms in an accurately positionedplanar array for automatic application to a circuit board by apick-and-place machine.

A further object is to support the preforms from their edges with themajor surfaces separated from other surfaces during application ofno-clean flux liquid and during drying so that the resulting fluxcoating is uniform.

Another object is to circulate air to the bottom surface of the preformsfor drying.

Another object is to provide a self-centering holder cavity to provideaccurate positioning of the preforms with respect to the holder.

Another object is to provide an automatic pick-and-place machine whichprovides for accurate positioning of a holder in relation to the machinefor automatic removal of preforms from the array and accuratepositioning of the preforms on a circuit board.

Another object is to provide a pick-and-place machine with a rotarytable having multiple positions for accurately positioning a holder toprevent interruption of circuit board production.

Another object of the invention is to provide a circuit board withaccurately positioned, high reliability, no-clean solder joints.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a bottom view of part of the holder of the invention, andshows spacers connected to the holder bottom.

FIG. 2 is a section through line 2--2 of the part of the holder of FIG.1, and in addition shows solder preforms in the cavities and shows alower holder in stacked position in phantom.

FIG. 3 is an expanded view of a cavity of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an expanded view or the solder-preform with a coating ofno-clean flux exagerrated in thickness for illustration.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the carrier of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a top view partial section through lines 6--6 of the carriershown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a side view partial section through lines 7--7 of FIG. 6 of apart of a carrier of the invention illustrating parts of 10 holders withpreforms, and a top holder without preforms.

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan of the pick-and-place machine of theinvention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic side view of the probe and gripper at the end ofthe robot arm of FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a bottom view of a specific embodiment of the preformholder 100 which is part of the invention of applicant. Holder 100 issymmetric in two directions about line A--A and also about line B--B,except for the holes and slots in the corners. Preferably, there is onlyone slot and it is in the lower right corner and there is only one holeand it is in the upper left corner as shown. There are no holes or slotsin the lower left and upper right corners of holder 100.

FIG. 2 shows a side view partial section of the right half of apreform-holder 102 in phantom. The holders are symmetric about lineC--C, except for holes and slots as described above. In FIG. 2,solder-preform holder 102 includes vacuum-formed supports (cavities) 105through 108, for supporting multiple planar solder-preforms 110 through113 by preform edges 116, 118 in a horizontal position. FIG. 2 alsoshows a lower holder 104 in phantom to illustrate the relationshipbetween an upper and an adjacent lower holder in a stack. FIG. 3 is anenlarged view of a cavity of empty top holder 100 and of lower holder102. When stacked, no other surfaces are in close proximity to the majorsurfaces 124 and 126 of preform 112 in order to prevent trapping liquidat 120 above the top surface and at 122 below the bottom surface of thepreforms, and to allow air to circulate to both major sides 124 and 126of preform 112. This prevents damage or contamination of a delicatelayer 128 (shown in FIG. 4) of no-clean flux which coats the majorsurfaces 124,126 of the preform.

In FIG. 1, holder-frame 140 positions the vacuum-formed cavities 105through 108 of each row to hold the preforms in a two-dimensional arraywithin a horizontal plane. As best illustrated by FIG. 2 by holder 102,each holder also includes stacking apparatus which preferably includesspacers 142 and 144 to provide for accurately positioning multiplepreform holders in a compressed vertical stack as shown in FIG. 5. InFIGS. 2 and 7 for each holder, rectangular cross section spacers 142 andfrustro-triangular cross section spacers 144 support an upper holder 102above a duplicate lower holder 104 (shown in phantom in FIG. 2) toaccurately control extension of the bottoms 162 of the cavities of theupper holder into the open tops of the cavities of the lower holder, asbest shown in FIG. 3. The extension is sufficient to hold the preformsin the bottom holder approximately in place and prevent migration of thepreform into position between the sidewalls of the upper and lowercavities when the holder is moved or tilted during transport.

As shown in FIG. 3, the spacers provide sufficient vertical clearancebetween the bottom 162 of the upper cavity and the preform to preventtrapping of liquid at 120 and to provide air circulation betweenpreforms in the lower holder 102 and the bottom 162 of the cavities ofupper holder 100. The invention also incudes passages 146 for aircirculation through space 122 below the bottom of the preforms when thepreform holders are stacked and includes passages 148 for aircirculating through the space at 120 above the top surface of thepreforms when the holders are stacked.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 1, holder-frame 140 includes a continuoussheet to which the supports are attached, and the supports include anarray of cavities (shaped as frustrums of rectangular pyramids) in ahorizontal plane in which each cavity has an open top end integrally andcontinuously connected to the sheet (as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 at 158and 160 of each cavity) for horizontally positioning the cavities withinthe array. As shown in FIG. 1, each cavity includes four flat sidewalls150, 152, 154 and 156 projecting in the same direction from the sheetwith the edges of the walls integrally and continuously interconnected,as shown in FIG. 1 at 162, 164, 166, and 168. Also, all the walls 150,154, 156, 158 of each cavity slope inwardly at the same angle toward thecenter of the cavity and connect continuously and integrally all aroundat 170, 172, 174 and 176 to the rectangular bottom wall 162. The slopeof the sidewalls is sufficiently small to guarantee that thesolder-preforms do not become wedged between the sidewalls in thecavities depending on the materials, geometries and tolerances of theholder and preforms. Preferably, the slope of the sidewall issufficiently large to provide self-centering of the solder-preformswithin a few mills during very low amplitude vibration of thesolder-preform carrier and to provide high density of cavities on thesheet. Preforms are centered in the cavities even if slightly undersizedor oversized. For example, an angle of 30 to 60 degrees is satisfactoryand 45 degrees, as shown, is preferred.

Preferably, the bottom wall is smaller than the solder-preform forpositioning the preform sufficiently far from the bottom wall, dependingon viscosity of the liquid and tolerances of the preforms and holderdimensions, to prevent liquid from becoming trapped between the preformand the bottom at 122 during liquid treatment of the preforms. Also,passage 146 for air circulation, preferably include one or more roundholes 180 and 182 in the bottom wall of each cavity to provide forcirculating dry air from outside the holder across the bottom of apreform in the cavity and to drain any excess liquid out of the bottomof the cavity.

Preferably, the materials of the holder are clear for visuallyinspecting the delicate flux coating on the bottoms of the preformswithout disturbing the preforms or contaminating the flux coating.Preferably, the sheet is a moldable polymeric material and the cavitiesare vacuum molded from the sheet to provide a smooth continuous integraljoint between the same materials and with the same thickness to providemaximum reliability at minimum costs. Most preferably the material is aclear polycarbonate.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 1, holder 100 is rectangular and includesindexing apparatus for accurately positioning the holder with respect toa pick-and-place machine for automated removal. The indexing apparatusmay include a hole 184 in one corner of the holder and a slot 186 in theopposite corner for accurately positioning of the holder for automatedremoval of the preforms. The corner hole and slot may be produced bypunching or drilling/routing. Preferably the width of the slot issubstantially different from the diameter of the hole so the holder canonly be placed in one upright position on a pick-and-place machine forautomatic accurate removal, for example, hole 184 is shown with a largerdiameter than the width of slot 186.

Preferably, each cavity is at least 2 mm deep and contains a thin,rectangular, planar, solder-preform having a delicate uniform coating oneach major side of contamination-free no-clean flux and having majordimensions in relation to the major dimensions of the cavities forsupporting each edge of the preform on the inwardly sloping sidewalls ofthe cavity, preferably, at least 1 mm above the bottom of the cavity.Spacers 142 and 144 are sized to guarantee enough extension of thebottom of the cavities of an upper holder into the cavities of a lowerholder to keep the preforms in the cavities and some clearance betweenbottoms of the cavities of the upper holder and solder-preforms in alower holder when the holders are stacked; generally at least 1 mm.Preferably, the material of the holder is treated in a well-known mannerto be anti-static anti-outgassing for minimizing contamination of thepreform during drying and storage. For example, the cavities may be 5 mmdeep and spacers 3 mm thick to provide an upper clearance of 1 mm andlower clearances of above 2 mm between a horizontal preform and cavitybottom walls of upper and lower holders.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the preform carrier of the invention. FIG. 6shows a top view partially in section along the lines 6--6 of FIG. 5.FIG. 7 shows a side view partial section along lines 7--7 of FIG. 6illustrating the right half of a preform carrier which is symmetricabout line D--D except that preferably, one of the posts issubstantially larger in diameter than the other (as shown in FIGS. 5 and6) so that the preform holders can only fit on the posts in one uprightposition. As shown in FIG. 7, a preform carrier includes a verticalstack of the preform holders 100, 102, 104 etc., and apparatus forhorizontally positioning the holders in relation to each other and forclamping the holders in the vertical stack rigidly together incompression so that preforms do not slip out of place if the carrier istilted or horizontally accelerated. The holding and clamping apparatusincludes a rigid rectangular bottom-frame 210 with a threaded post 212in one corner of the bottom-frame extending upward through slots (186 inFIG. 1) in the corner of each holder and a second, threaded post (216 inFIGS. 5 and 6) at the opposite corner of the bottom-frame extendingupward through holes (184 in FIG. 1) in the opposite respective cornerof each holder.

Preferably about 10 holders containing solder preforms 102, 104, etc.are stacked on the posts of the bottom-frame, then an empty preformholder 100 is placed on the stack to maintain the preforms in holder 102in place. Then a flat continuous sheet 218, also containing respectiveapertures at opposite corners, which may be a hole and a slot, ispositioned on the stack of preform holders to protect the preforms, forexample, from dust or falling water. A rigid top-frame 220 (best seen inFIG. 6), having corresponding apertures in respective opposite cornersis positioned on the stack with the posts extending through theapertures. The bottom frame has the same general shape as the top framein FIG. 6.

Nuts 222 and 224 are threaded onto the posts and screwed against thetop-frame to compress the stack of preform-holders together between thetop and bottom frames so the preforms can not move out of positionduring transport. Also, a handle 226 is provided which extends upward ina loop on the top-frame for manually lifting the preform carrier.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the invention also includes a solder-preformpick-and-place machine 300 which has a preform picking means 302,preferably with a vacuum probe 304 on a robot arm 306, for automaticallyand sequentially picking solder-preforms up from each respective cavityof a solder-preform holder 308 and for placing the preforms on circuitboard 310. The surface of tip 312 of the vacuum probe is preferably asoft elastomer, such as rubber to seal against the delicate no-cleanflux coating without damaging the coating for picking up the preform.The robot sequentially picks up solder preforms from preform holder 314and places them on one or more circuit boards 310. Post means such astwo or more posts 316, 318 extending upward through the apertures atopposite corners of the solder-preform holder, accurately position theholder in relation to the solder-preform picking means for picking up asolder preform from each cavity of the array of cavities of the holderand for accurately placing the preform on a circuit board. Preferably, apair of posts have different diameters (as previously described for thepreform carrier bottom frame) to correspond to differently sized holeand slot of the preform holders so there is only one correct uprightposition for each holder at each holder position in the pick-and-placemachine.

Preferably the pick-and-place machine includes a table 320 with multiplelocations for solder-preform holders. The table can be rotated to allowsolder-preforms to be picked from each respective location, to providefor unattended operation for extended periods, and to allow emptyholders to be replaced with full holders while the pick-and-placemachine operates, preventing delays in operation. Each position includesa pair of the positioning posts of different size to snugly conform withthe respective hole and slot for one respective preform holder.

Preferably, robot arm 306 is also provided with a gripper 350 forpicking up a component 352 from component dispenser 354 and an inductioncoil 356 to heat the component sufficiently for reflow soldering of thepreform. A heater 358 (shown in phantom), such as an IR heater, may beprovided by means well-known in the art to preheat the circuit board tonear soldering temperature.

The solder-preform holders are manufactured by heating a sheet ofthermoplastic resin above the transition temperature and molding anarray of continuous, rectangular section, frustro-pyramidal shapedcavities as described above. Then forming one or more holes in thebottom of each molded cavity by drilling or punching for draining liquidfrom the cavity and admitting circulating air to dry the bottom side ofthe preform; and connecting the previously described spacers to thebottom surface of the holder, preferably by gluing with epoxy. Also, around hole is punched in one corner and an oblong slot is punched in theopposite corner of the sheet preferably with the width of the slotsubstantially different from the diameter of the hole as describedabove.

The preform holders are used for treating the solder-preforms. Theplanar solder-preforms are inserted in a horizontal position with eachedge of the preform supported by an inwardly tapered wall of arespective cavity of the preform holder as previously described.No-clean flux liquid is introduced to the preforms in the holder.

Preferably a measured amount of no-clean flux, dissolved in a liquid, isdispensed onto a first major side of each preform to form a liquidcoating while positioned in a first preform holder. Then a secondpreform holder is positioned in an inverted position over the firstpreform holder and both preform holders are simultaneously flipped overto position the preforms in the second preform holder without affectingthe liquid coating. Then a measured amount of the no-clean flux solutionis dispensed onto the other major side of each preform in the holder.

The coating of flux liquid may be inspected by looking through thebottom of the holder prior to stacking. The preforms may be dried eitherbefore or after the holders are assembled into carriers by stacking andclamping the holders between the frames. Preferably the preforms aredried at substantially above ambient temperature for faster drying, andthen the dry powder coating is inspected before carrier assembly.

In the invention, a circuit board 310 is manufactured by transportingthe preform carrier to a pick-and-place machine, unstacking the preformholders from the carrier frames, and positioning the holders at posts onthe machine. The preforms are vacuum picked up from holder 316 andplaced on circuit board 310. Measurement is not necessary sincevibration of the machine is sufficient to center each solder preform inits respective cavity in the holder within a few mils and the holdersare accurately positioned on the posts. Then components 352 are pickedup using gripper 350 and placed on induction coil 356 and heatedsufficiently to provide energy for reflow soldering the preforms, andthen the component is placed onto the circuit board over the preforms.Alternately, the circuit board, preform and component can be heatedsufficiently on site or in an oven (not shown) for reflow solderedconnection of the component to the circuit board. Then the circuit boardis allowed to cool. No-clean flux does not leave contamination whichcould lead to insulation-resistance shorts. Also it does not requirecleaning with CFC's, methylene chloride or other solvents prior toutilizing the board.

I claim:
 1. A solder-preform holder comprising:means for supporting multiple planar solder-preforms by their edges in horizontal position with no other surfaces in close proximity to major surfaces of the preform to prevent trapping liquid on the top or bottom surfaces of the preform and to allow air to circulate to both major sides of the preform and to prevent damage or contamination to a delicate layer of no-clean flux on the major surfaces of the preform; means for horizontally positioning said support means for holding the multiple solder-preforms in a two-dimensional array within a horizontal plane; means for positioning multiple preform holders in a vertical stack for maintaining sufficient horizontal spacing between the major surfaces of the preform and other surfaces to prevent trapping of liquid and allow circulation of drying air on the top and bottom surfaces of the preform and for maintaining the preforms in approximately horizontal position in relation to the plane of the preform array regardless of tilting or horizontal acceleration during transport; means for circulating air from outside the holder across the bottom of the preforms in the preform holders.
 2. The solder-preform holder of claim 1 in which means for supporting multiple planar solder-preforms by their edges include,a planar array of rectangular cavities having: an open top end integrally connected to said means for horizontally positioning said supporting means; four sidewalls with their edges integrally connected and all projecting in the same direction from the open top end and sloping inwardly toward the center of the cavity with the angle between the horizontal plane and each sidewall sufficiently small to prevent a solder-preform from becoming wedged in the cavity; and a closed rectangular bottom wall integrally connected all around with the sidewalls and smaller than the solder-preform for positioning the preform sufficiently far from the bottom wall to prevent liquid from becoming trapped between the preform and the bottom wall during liquid treatment of the preforms.
 3. The solder-preform holder of claim 2 in which means for circulating air include,one or more holes in the bottom wall of each cavity to circulate dry air from outside the cavity across the bottom of a preform in the cavity.
 4. The solder-preform holder of claim 2 in which means for positioning multiple preform holders and for maintaining the preforms in approximately horizontal position include,spacers for supporting a top holder above a duplicate bottom holder for controlling extension of the bottoms of the cavities of the top holder into the tops of the cavities of the bottom holder; sufficiently near, depending on manufacturing tolerances of the holders to any preform carried in the bottom holder, to maintain the preforms in the bottom holder, approximately in place to prevent migration of the preform into position between the sidewalls of the cavities when the holder is moved or tilted; and sufficiently far, depending on manufacturing tolerances of the holders, to prevent trapping of liquid between preforms in the bottom holder and the bottom of the cavities of the top holder, for proper coating and drying to produce a uniform coating of no-clean flux.
 5. The solder-preform holder of claim 1, including:a sheet; multiple cavities having:an open top end integrally connected all around to the sheet; sidewalls all projecting in the same direction from the sheet with side edges integrally interconnected to form a cavity and sloping inwardly toward the center of the cavity with an angle between the sheet and sidewall sufficiently small to prevent wedging solder-preforms between the sidewalls in the cavity; a bottom wall integrally connected all around with the sidewalls and smaller than the solder-preform to prevent liquid from becoming trapped between the preform and the bottom during liquid treatment of the preforms; and one or more holes in the bottom of the cavity to admit drying air into the cavity below the preform; and spacers for supporting an upper holder above a duplicate lower holder for controlling the extension of the bottoms of the cavities of the upper holder into the tops of the cavities of the lower holder; and in which: the spacers accurately position the bottoms of the cavities of the upper holder at least partially into the cavities of the lower holder and sufficiently near to preforms carried in the lower holder to maintain the preforms in the lower holder approximately in place to prevent migration of the preform to a position between the sidewalls of lower and upper cavities when the holder is horizontally accelerated or tilted; and the spacers accurately position the bottoms of the cavities of the upper holder sufficiently far from the preforms carried in the lower holder to prevent trapping liquid and to provide drying air circulation between preforms in the bottom holder and the bottoms of the cavities of the top holder.
 6. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 in which:the angle between the sheet and the sidewall is sufficiently small to guarantee that the solder-preforms do not become wedged in the cavities depending on the materials, geometries and tolerances of the holder and preforms; and the angle between the sheet and the sidewall is sufficiently large to provide self-centering of the solder-preforms during vibration of the solder-preform carrier and to provide high density of cavities on the sheet.
 7. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 in which,materials of the holder are clear for visually inspecting the delicate flux coating on the bottom of preforms without disturbing the preform.
 8. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 in which,a solder-preform with both major sides uniformly coated with flux are contained in each cavity for contamination free automatic placement on a circuit board.
 9. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 further comprising,indexing means for accurately positioning of the holder in relation to a pick-and-place machine for automated removal of preforms.
 10. The solder-preform holder of claim 9 in which:the holder is rectangular; and indexing means include: a hole in one corner; and a slot in the opposite corner for accurately positioning of the holder for the automated removal of preforms.
 11. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 in which:the sheet is a moldable polymeric material; and the cavities are molded from the sheet for providing a smoothly integral joint between the same materials and with the same thickness to provide maximum reliability.
 12. The solder-preform holder of claim 11 in which,the material is a clear polycarbonate for visually inspecting a delicate coating of no-clean flux without disturbing the preform or contaminating the flux coating.
 13. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 in which,the angle between the sheet and the sidewall is approximately 45 degrees.
 14. The solder-preform holder of claim 5 in which,each cavity is at least 2 mm deep; the angle between the sheet and the sidewall is about 30 to about 60 degrees; each cavity contains a thin, rectangular, planar, solder-preform having a delicate uniform coating on each major side of contamination free no-clean flux and having major dimensions in relation to the major dimensions of the cavities for supporting each edge of the preform on the inwardly sloping sidewalls of the cavity at least about 1 mm above the bottom of the cavity; the spacers are at least about 1 mm thick; the material of the holder is a clear polycarbonate treated to be anti-static anti-outgassing for visually inspecting the delicate flux coating on the bottom of the preforms without disturbing the preform or contaminating the flux coating and the sheet is vacuum molded to provide the cavities; and the holder is rectangular and further includes: an hole in one corner; and a longitudinally directed slot in an opposite corner for accurately positioning the holder and with a substantially different width than the diameter of the hole to provide a single correct upright orientation for the holder for automatic removal of the preforms.
 15. A solder-preform carrier comprising:means for supporting multiple planar solder-preforms by their edges in horizontal position with no other surfaces in close proximity to the major surfaces of the preforms to prevent trapping liquid on the top or bottom surfaces of the preforms and to allow air to circulate to both major sides of the preforms and to prevent damage or contamination to a delicate layer of no-clean flux on the major surfaces of the preforms; means for horizontally positioning said supporting means for holding the multiple solder-preforms in a two-dimensional array within a horizontal plane; means for vertically positioning multiple preform holders in an accurately spaced vertical stack for maintaining sufficient horizontal spacing between the major surfaces of the preform and other surfaces to prevent trapping liquid and provide circulation of air on the top and bottom surfaces of the preforms and for maintaining the preforms in approximately horizontal position in relation to the plane of the preform array regardless of tilting or horizontal acceleration during transport; means for circulating air from outside the bottoms of the cavities across the bottom of the preforms in the preform holders; means for horizontally positioning the holders in the vertical stack in relation to each other; means for clamping the holders in the vertical stack rigidly together in compression; and handle means for manually lifting the vertical stack.
 16. The solder-preform holder of claim 15, including:multiple, rectangular, horizontally oriented sheets arranged in a vertical stack; multiple cavities for each respective sheet, having:an open top end integrally connected all around to the sheet; sidewalls all projecting in the same direction from the sheet with edges integrally interconnected to form a cavity and sloping inwardly toward the center of the cavity at an angle between the horizontal plane and the sidewalls is sufficiently small to prevent wedging of solder-preforms between the sidewalls in the cavity; a bottom wall integrally connected all around with the sidewalls and smaller than the solder-preform to provide sufficient clearance between the bottom wall and preform to prevent liquid from becoming trapped between the preform and the bottom during liquid treatment of the preforms; and one or more holes in the bottom of the cavity for circulating drying air from outside the bottom of the cavities and across the bottoms of the preforms; supports connected to the bottom of each sheet for accurately positioning each upper sheet above an adjacent duplicate lower sheet in )the stack for controlling the extension of the bottom wall of the cavities of the upper sheet into the tops of the cavities of the lower sheet; a hole in one corner of each sheet; a slot in an opposite corner of each sheet with a width substantially different than the diameter of the hole's opposite corner; a rigid rectangular bottom frame with a threaded post in one corner of the frame extending upward through the holes in the sheets and a second threaded post in the opposite corner of the frame extending upward through the slots in the sheets, said posts of different sizes to snugly fit the respective hole or slot; a planar cover with approximately the same dimensions as the rectangular sheets and apertures in opposite corners through which the posts extend to protect the stack from dust and falling liquids; a rigid top frame with apertures in opposite corners through which the posts extend; and a threaded nut engaging each threaded post above the top frame to compress the stack of sheets together; and in which: the supports accurately position the bottoms of the cavities sufficiently near to preforms of the lower sheet to hold the preforms approximately in place to prevent migration of the preform to a position between the sidewalls of the cavities of the lower and upper sheets when the carrier is horizontally accelerated or tilted; and the supports accurately position the bottoms of the cavities sufficiently far from the preforms to provide drying air circulation between preforms of the lower sheet and the bottoms of the cavities of the upper sheet. 